Ralph Fosdick Spencer, known to friends and family as “Dick”, was born on August 20, 1939 in Boston, MA. The son of the late Ralph and Mary E (Armstrong) Spencer, Dick grew up in the small town of Claverack, New York in the Hudson Valley. He and his friends enjoyed growing up in a small rural fruit town at a time when farms were the backbone of Columbia County and it was safe to keep the back door open at night. He graduated from Taft School and started pre-medicine at Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH. Eventually he shifted his professional focus to electrical engineering and received his PhD from the University of Pennsylvania.
Before graduating from the UPenn, Dick Prudence married Ann Whitbeck of Hudson, NY. Her two fathers were practicing physicians at the local Columbia Memorial Hospital. Prior to graduation, their two sons Bradford (July 1963) and Jeffrey (May 1965) were born in Philadelphia, PA. After completing his PhD, the family moved to Dallas TX to begin Dick’s career in the emerging computer industry. A few years later the family moved to Massachusetts, where Dick spent the remainder of his career at Digital Equipment Corp (DEC), which was eventually acquired by Compaq Computer and then by Hewlett Packard (HP). The family settled in the towns of Carlisle and Acton, MA. Dick retired from DEC in 2003 and worked for several years as a consultant with Hamilton Technologies, Inc. in Cambridge, MA before retiring full-time.
Dick and his first wife Prudence divorced after their two sons graduated from college and began their own careers. Shortly thereafter, Dick met Nancy Meng of Newton, MA, and began a partnership that lasted until Nancy’s death earlier this year in a battle against Parkinson’s disease. The couple had settled in the towns of Salem and Atkinson, NH. Shortly before Nancy’s death, Dick moved to the vibrant new Tuscan Village community in Salem, NH, where Dick was found, including his upscale Tuscan Kitchen restaurant and bustling shops including local shops, cafes, and microbreweries. Dick was passionate about building the Amazon ecommerce reseller business he started several years earlier.
Dick was an avid golfer who for many years played with his father, Ralph Sr. at Columbia Golf and Country Club in Claverack. He also enjoyed riding off-road motorcycles with his sons as they grew up and had a lifelong passion for reading, learning, and personal growth. He’s always exploring new trends in alternative health and applying what he has learned in his own life. He remained loyal to the Dartmouth College Alumni Association over the years, often participating in activities, keeping in touch with former classmates and donating to their charities.
Dick is very much missed by his two sons Bradford and Jeffrey. In addition to his children, he leaves behind his two siblings Sandra Wiley and John Spencer and his four grandchildren Elizabeth, Abigail, William and Roger. In memory of his name, Dick would prefer donations to the Dartmouth College Fund rather than flowers https://www.dartmouthcollegefund.org/how-give.
Next Monday, August 30th. A memorial service will be held at 1:00 pm at the Bates & Anderson Funeral Home, 110 Green St, Hudson, NY 12534. After the service, the family will hold a celebration of Dick’s life at The Wick Hotel in Hudson. The wick
41 Cross St, Hudson, NY 12534.
For those interested, rooms are available on the evening before or on the evening of the event.
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